Battery and cable carrier



Sept. 16, 1952 l.. BETz 2,610,987

BATTERY AND CABLE CARRIER Filed May a, 1951 Patented Sept. 16, 119572 v@ire"srrlfrfis TENT OFFICE The present--inventionireiatesf to a oattery and cable carrier, and more' particularly; to a` carry?, ingcase for a Wet cell batterand the cableleads secured tothe terrn'inals or"the"battery; Y

Storage batteries emp'l'oyeda's a' portablesource of' electrical energy arev not provided with handles or any like means for pickingu'pand transportiing the battery. The. batteries' areo lieavy and diicult tonandle, particularlyfinview'of thefa'ct thatfif they are tipped or"tilte`d.'. thei'liq'uid in trie` batteries may spill out In" View" of" these factors, there" has been a` decided ne'e'd for a carrierro'r Vbatteriesutilized asa portable `so`u1"ce of electrical energy. K

Batteries; Whenused as' a;` portable' sonrceoi electricalenergy, have" cabl'esconiiected `to ytheir terminals; The terminals" a.'r'.etis1i'ally4k rubber s'lfiea'tlie-dand tend to `assinne their full length and drag' along behind when" the" battery*isA being transported; and' therefore'aredi'fcult to handle Thefcables4v may 'be` stepped upon', resulting inv damage; 'particularly tothe' clampingjawsat the freeends of` tbecables, land thecables may-"be jerked loosey Afronti trieA battery" lterminals.` Oecasionally, the clamps at 'tli'efree ends orfV the cables will Contact 'each other 'a'nd establish ai shortf circuit; i l l' It is, accordingly; a primary'iobject"ortheipr'es-l ent invention toV provide* a carrier 'forl aHbattery and itssas'sociat'ed'cables to'provide'a' convenient means for lifting and transporting" the* 'battery and also-the-oables associated tlier'eWitlfi in' asafe," oompaetand convenient manner: Witifthecar'- ri'e-r-v of the presentinventiong'the -cablesrneed not? b'eLdisconnee-ted fromI the' terminals as-Y av safety precaution `since tbeyiaremaint'ained infseparated positions. Consequently; theytogether Witnlth'e battery, are ready. forl use and. transportationfat moment...

Qnecommon use-of-portablefstora'ge batteries isf asf-a` temporary'v booster sourc'e'lofMelectr-ical energy for use. `in"VV star-ting vehiclel engines'. In Acold Weather, .Vehicle engines 'and the batteries@forni-Y ing the: source. of'electrical .ener'g'iy for 'the-elec; tri'cal .systemiof the vehicle', approach ambient temperature ifileft testand exposed-tothe ele-'f ments ima'fnonloperating' condition 'f'or periods? tolsupnly Lsiii'centcorrent' tothestartingfmotorf l to" erratic' triestarting motor" toY turn" the engine over. When such situationsA occur', it' iscommozi to" call" a service station and have' an' attendant bring.. a storage battery, commonly referd t0' afs'fa booster batteryg"l to th'e'locationof tliecar. 'f The terminals o'f the booster battery' arie" then connected'VA to the terminals of" theSvehi'cle"liattie'lryv to supplyA suoi-cient current to the starteriotor to" startthe4 vehicleL engine: When trie" vehicle engine is started, tlffeboosterbatterycari 1b` Will continue tooperate. In' a singleinstanc'e of siiclr` use, tlieboost'er battery" mitst beta'ken from@ the service station;l placed upon` aL trick transported to "the location`- or' the stalled' vehicle;

i lifted off the truck, placed on the fenderfo'f the staiiedl vehicleor on the ground; iate'rremeved from the vehicle or the ground; placed" back'on" thei truck; transported balokto theservice"`st2ttion removedfrom thetruckandplaced in'tlieseryioe liftedv and setdown'ye'ry frequently. ueto* its heaviness'andA the' la'wkytar d' w'ayinewl'iiol it be' handled, itfislveryldiicnlt'to set thetbattery. downii-ghtiywithout-tilting-'same Asprevioosry stated, if the battery is tilted, the acidfrim's o'iit and thebatteryfbecomesuseless; iff-the'battery i's droppeeor setdow'n 'withoi'itr snciet (farei the' cas-ing of1 the Lbattery mayifc'rack, t'hfusruining `the b'altteryi lt'eiscorrrmon lpractice to4 connecte'l' lengths o'f- 'cableleaids tojv Ythe terminals' of' s the booster battery for-*connection to the terminals 0i? theA VehicleA battery; and Vin' Atrane''portl-11gtlie boostery battery the'sel 'cablesf may become 'eneL tangled-i' may '-b'st'epp'd Orlo'r: the like: Itl's' of" the invention; the carrier Vof fthe"`pr'esent"'in'vgei=- I tion i comprises' abox* or' casing adapted' to confa 3 transportable in any one of a plurality of alternate manners.

A further object of the invention is to provide means for guiding the cables which are connected with the battery terminals and for preventing excessive flexing of the cables when they are connected to the terminals. By such means, breakage of the cables adjacent the terminals is prevented. The guide means also assist in directing the cables most'suitably for coiling them on the retaining means which are provided by the handles of the casing or carrier. In the preferred form of the present invention, the guide means are adjustable to different positions with respect to the casing or carrier in order to permit the guide means to be most appropriately positioned for the terminals of the particular battery received in the carrier. y

A still further object of the invention is to provide ,retaining meansfor the free terminals ffth'e cableleads'to prevent unwinding of the cables' "from the handles about which they are coiled.'

.'Theivarious 'objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of preferred embdiments'of 'the present invention, reference being made in the following description to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure l'is a plan View of a portable four cell storage battery'having cables connected to the terminals thereof, the battery being mounted in the carrier of the present invention and the cables being coiled upon the cable retaining means of the carrier;

"Figure 2,`an end elevation taken from the left endof Figure 1;

Figure V3,'a fragmentary cross sectional view taken on the line 3 3 of Figure 2; and

Figure 4, a plan view of a portable three cell storage battery having cables connected to the terminals thereof, with the battery mounted in thecarrier of the present invention Aand the cables coiled about the cable retaining means of the carrier. l The carrier shown in Figure 1 is particularly adapted `rfor transporting a wet cell storage battery I having four cells II, I2, I3 and I4, interconnected by bus bars I5, IS and I1, the end cells having terminals I8 in the form of smooth surfaced, tapered studs. Terminal clamps 20 are detachably secured to the terminals I8 by means of Vbolts 2|. l Elongate lengths of rubber encased cable 22 are secured to the terminal clamps 20 in a usual manner, Aas by soldering, and terminate at their free ends in pliers-type clamps 23. The handles of the pliers-type clamps 23 are encased in rubber sleeves 24 which insulate the clamps from the hands of a user and also cover and enclose the connection between the cables 22 and the clamps 23.

As seen from the drawing. the battery of itself is not provided with any means for carrying or transporting the battery, accordingly, it must ordinarily be grasped by its bottom edges. which is a difficult and awkwardl way of carrying as heavy an item as abattery. In addition, there is every possibility of tilting the batteryor of settingy the battery down with too much force which results in the spilling of the battery acid or thev cracking of the battery case. 'Ihe case of the battery is hard and when the battery is placed upon or moved along a surface,rthe surface is marred or the battery case is marred or cracked. This is a, particularly disadvantageous feature when the battery must be placed upon the fender of a vehicle when the battery is being used as a booster battery. In order to obviate all of these disadvantages, the present invention provides a carrier for the battery provided with handles which facilitate the easy transportation and carrying of the battery and also provides cushioning means to prevent the transmission of shock to the battery case and to prevent the scratching and marring of surfaces upon which the battery may be placed.

The carrier of the present invention is indicated generally by the reference numeral 30 and comprises a box 3I having a bottom 32, vertical side Walls 33 and vertical end walls 34. The box is open at its top end for the reception of the battery. Accordingly, the upper surfaces of the side and end walls terminate adjacent the top of the battery, and preferably slightly below the upper surface of the battery to be received within the box. The box` is of a size and shape to conformably receive the battery so that same is stationarily .positioned within the box without freedom for lateral movement. The box is preferably formed of wood in any usual manner of Wooden construction so as to provide substantial strength for the support and retention of the battery. Any material other than wood may be utilized in the construction `of the box, but it is .preferred that such materials have the characteristics of substantial strength, substantial rigidity, ability to absorb shock, and ability to provide a certain amount of insulation.

A pair of cable clamps 35 are detachably secured to the upper surface of the walls of the box by screws 36. Itis preferred that the clamps 35 be secured to the upper surface of one of the side wallsin alignment with the battery terminals I8,'substantially' as shown in Figure l, but

may be secured tothe upper surface of any of the walls as desired in any particular installation. A cushioning and insulating piece of material, such as rubber, may be positioned between each of the clamps 35 and the upper surface of the box toA provide a resiliency of mounting for the cable clamps 35. The cable clamps 35 are preferably aligned with the terminal clamps 20 so that the cables 22 pass in a straight line from the terminals 20 through the clamps 35. The cables are surrounded by a grommet tube 38 at the portion thereof passing through the clamps 35 to provide improved insulation, resiliency of connection and increased resistance to wear. The clamps 35 serve to prevent exation of the cables 22 at the point of their connection to the terminal clamps 2), which is a point of usual failure or breaking of the cables 22.

Fixedly secured to each end wall 34, at substantially the mid-point thereof, is a combined handle and cable carrier 4I). The handle and cable carrier 40 is formed of a unitary sheet 42, comprising a, base 43 secured to the end wall 34 byvmeans of bolts 44 and nuts 45, as shown in Figure 3. The end walls of the box are preferably provided with recesses 46 in their inner surfaces-for the reception of the bolts 44 and nuts -45.V Extending normally to the base 43 at either end thereof are transverse walls 41, which terminate in walls or flanges 48 that are parallel to but longitudinally and transversely spaced from the base 43. The anges 48, in conjunction with the transverse walls 41, serve as a retaining acid-98'? handle, portion of the member lili consists of a tube or pipe 50 extend `ng between the trans',-I verse walls lland connected 'thereto by -ineansl tion' to be pointed out hereinafter are extremelyadvantageous and should loe-utilized, butdo not constitute essential characteristics'of a battery and cable carrier.

Referring particularly to Figure 3, the bottom S2', the lower portions of the side walls 33 and the lower portions of the end walls 35i of the box 3l are encased in a cushioning substance 55, such as rubber, which provides means for absorbing shock and insulating the carrier. The cushion bottom 55, in addition to its shock absorbing quality, also serves to protect the surfaces upon which the battery carrier and battery may be positioned. The cushion bottom 55 may be formed integrally as shown in Figure 3, or may consist-of several pieces., such as, one piece bottom and a strip extende ing around side walls and end walls of the box, or a bottom consisting of several pieces with a strip extending around the side and end walls surfaces of the carrier is not as great as that i applied to the lower surfaces. g Y

A bracket 6E is secured to each end Wall 35i of the box 3| by means of a rivet, screw or bolt bl. The bracket is insulated from the box by meansV of the cushion 53 upon which the bracket t8 is mounted. The bracket Si) servesto receive and retain the plierstype clamps 23E-at the free ends of the cables. @ne handle of the clamps 23 may be inserted within the bracket te as shown in Figures l and 2, or the clamping jaws of the clamps 23 maybe clamped around the opstandl ing free end ofthe oracket St to retain the clampsin position against the end walls. 34 of the box 3l. The retention of the clamps 23 by the brackets Bil prevents the uncoiling of cables 22.

Secured to the upper edge of each end walltll at substantially the mid-point thereof, isa handle bracket 5E consisting of two parallel spaced portions 6s and el and a transverse connecting wall E8.. The lower of the twol parallel portions B is secured to the end wall 3@ in any suitable manner and is preferably positioned between the box and the cushion member 53. The transverse portion E38 extends along the upper surface of the end wall and the upper of the parallel portions @l extends upwardly and is provided with a hole S9 for the reception of a loop it provided at the end of a U-shaped handle or bail li. The bail `H is mounted in the bracket for pivotal movement from a lowered position in which it engages the upper surfaces of the side and. end walls of the.

box to a raised position in which it serves as a' handle for carrying the box andthe battery rey oeived therein. The bail 'l l in its carrying posit-` tion, extends above and longitudinally' of.' thei battery torfser've as a handleffor-carryng the box: il` and the battery lli should the handles-.511iprove.y

awkward or inconvenient in particular instances; The bail 'Il is so shaped as to conform to vonefhalf of the perimeterrzof the box; so thatsame inits loweredposition lies alongt portions of. the. upper: surfaces ofthe endl walls. :it-land' along. the .upper surfaceof oneof the side walls 33.', ascshown: Figure. l. Thebailll. should preferablyilie along. theside wall opposite that; to` which. the'. clamps*- 35 are connected. Toinsure that'this relationshipexists; the brackets. d5 are provided with limit; means. or stops in the form oi an' upstanding por` tion or lip 'l2 arranged to engage` theloops 'llinz the ends of. the bail H to prevent pivotal movementi of the bail towardtheside, of the. boxfrom` which the cables extend. Asamodied fommthes brackets t5 may beforrnedof anat sheet andiniserted in a slot or hole in theendwalls datand secured therein `by a boltv or the like. The bracket, d5 and bail 'il constitute a portion of the pre-A ferred embodiment of the present invention,.but. are not essential to the invention and may be included or leftV out of. thepconstruction as desired.`

The four cell battery shown in Figure 1, has'its terminals mountedadjacent the sameside thereof so that the cables and clamps therefor are con-2 veniently mountedA symmetrically on the upper surface ofone side wall 33. of. the. box 3i.. In

Figure 4, there is shown a three cell battery lila:v

having three wet cells Ha, 2a and i3d inter-4l connected by means of busbars la and. la, the. end cells having terminals ld. 'I'he terminals lta are positioned on opposite sides of thebat-V tery Ida and accordingly certain'changes4 must: be Vmade in thev positioning of cables. 22a and clamps 35oover that shown inFig'ure 1.. Aeon.- venient and preferred arrangement is shown in Figure 4, in which the cables are both led. from the same side of the carrier. The remainder of the construction shown in Figure Cl is substantially identical to the previously described. construction, and parts similar to parts of. the previously described embodiment. have been indicated by the same reference` numeral with the sunlxa. in the embodiment ofv Figure luthebrackets to andbail 'l have been omitted asV being non-essential.

From the foregoing description parent that the present invention provides a. car.- rier for a battery and its associated cables which facilitates the handling and carrying of the bat;-

however, the carrier of the present invention isprovided with cushion means for absorbing the greater portion of the shock to prevent crackingV of the battery case. The carrier of the present inventionmay be readily adapted to batteries of any size and shape.

Various changes or modifications may bemade in. details. of construction and inthe materials of construction. referred. to and described in the foregoing detailed description of a preferred em;-A bodirnent of thepresent invention. Such variations, modications andchanges readily suggest. themselves to thoseskilled in theart, and accord-- ingly,.I donotwisrrto limit mynvention;particu it will be ap'- larly to the embodiment described hereinbefore, butzrather define my invention by the appended claims.

I claim:

. 1. A battery and cable carrier adapted to receive a battery and the cables connected to the terminals of the battery, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive a battery with the upper surface of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each of two opposite walls of said box, and a retaining bracket secured to each of two opposite walls of said box for the reception of the free end of each battery cable.

2. A battery and cable carrier adapted to re'- ceive a battery and the cables connected to the terminalsv of the battery, the battery cables terminating in clamps, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive a battery with the upper surface of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each of two opposite walls of said box, and a retaining bracket secured to each of two opposite walls of said box for the reception and retention of the clamps at the ends of the battery cables.

3. A battery and cable carrier adapted to receive a battery and the cable connected to the terminals of the battery, the battery cables terminating in clamps, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive a battery with the upper surface of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each end wall of said box, and a retaining bracket secured to each end wall of said box adjacent the upper surface thereof and adjacent said combined handle and cable retaining means for the reception and retention of the clamps at the end-s of the battery cables.

4. A battery and cable carrier adapted to receive a battery and the cables connected to the terminals of the battery, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive a battery with the upper surface of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each of two opposite walls of said box, handle brackets secured to each of two opposite walls of said box, and a handle pivotally connected to said brackets and arranged for pivotal movement to a carrying position in which said handle extends over the upper surface of said box.

5. A battery and cable carrier adapted to receive a battery and the cables connected to the terminals of the battery, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive a battery with the upper surface of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each of two opposite walls of said box, a handle bracket secured to each of two opposite walls of said box, a handle pivotally connected to said brackets for movement to a carrying position in which the handle extends over the upper surface of said box, and limit means formed integrally with said handle brackets to prevent movement of said handle in one direction from its carrying position.

6. A battery and cable carrier ad-apted to receive a battery and the cables connected to the terminals of the battery, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive a battery with the top of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each end wall of said box, a handle bracket secured to the upper portion of each end wall at the midpoint thereof and having a portion extending above the upper` surface of said end wall, a bail having end portions pivotally connected toeach of said brackets for movement to a carrying position in which the bail extends above the upper surface of said box and longitudinally thereof, and limit means formed integrally with each of said handle brackets for engagement with said end portions of said bail to prevent movement of said bai1 in one direction from its carrying position.

7. A battery and cable carrier adapted to receive a battery and the cables connected to the terminals of the battery, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive the battery with the top of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each of two opposite walls of said box, a retaining bracket secured to each of two opposite walls of said box for -the reception and retention of the free end of each of said battery cables, a handle bracket secured to each of two opposite walls of said box, and a bail pivotally connected to each of said handle brackets for movement to a carrying position in which the bail extends over the upper surface -cf said box to provide a handle for carrying said box and the battery to be received therein.

8. A battery and cable carrier adapted to receive a, battery and the cables connected to the terminals of the battery, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive a battery with the upper surface of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each end Wall of said box, a cushion for the bottom and l-ower portions of the walls of said box, a retaining bracket secured to each end wall of said box for the reception and retention of the free ends of the battery cables, a handle bracket secured t-o each end Wall of said box, and a handle pivotally connected to each of said handle brackets for movement to a carrying position in which the handle ex-tends above said box longitudinally thereof.

9. A battery and cable carrier adapted to receive a battery and the cables connected to the terminals of the battery, comprising an open top box adapted to eonformably receive a battery with the upper surface of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each end wall of said box, a cushion for the bottom and lower portions of the side walls of said box, a cushion for the upper portion of the walls of said box, a retaining bracket secured to each end wall of said box for the reception and retention of the free ends of the battery cables, a handle bracket secured to each end wall of said box, and a, handle pivotally connected to each of said handle brackets for movement to a carrying position in which the handle extends above said box and longitudinally thereof.

10. A battery and cable carrier adapted to receive a Ibattery and the cables connected to the terminals of the battery, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive a battery with the upper surface of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each end Wall of said box, a cushion for the bottom and the lower portions of the walls of said box, a cushion for the upper portion of the Walls of said box, a retaining bracket secured to each end wall of said box for the reception and retention of the free ends of said battery cables, said retaining brackets being each secured to the end wall of said box adjacent the upper surface thereof and adjacent said combined handle and cable retaining means for the reception of the coiled about the retaining means, a handle bracket secured to the upper portion of each end wall and having a portion extending above the upper surface of said end Wall, and a handle having portions pivotally connected to the upwardly extending portions of each of said handle brackets for movement to a carrying position in which the handle extends above and longitudinally of said box, and limit means formed integrally with each of said handle brackets and arranged for engagement with said portions of said handle pivotally connected to said handle brackets for preventing movement of said handle in one direction from said carrying position.

11. A battery and cable carrier adapted to receive a battery and the cables connected to the terminals of the battery, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive the battery with the upper surface of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each end wall of said box, a bracket for each battery cable secured to the upper surface of the walls of said box, and a cushion for the bottom and the lower portions of the walls of said box.

12. A battery and cable carrier adapted to receive a battery and the cables connected to the terminals of the battery, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive the battery with the upper surface of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each end wall of said box, a cable bracket for each of said battery cables secured in detachable fashion to the upper surface of the walls of said box, and a retaining bracket secured to each end wall of said box for the reception and retention of the free end of the battery cables after the cables have been passed through said cable brackets and coiled around said cable retaining means.

13. A battery cable and carrier adapted to receive a battery and the cables connected to the terminals of the battery, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive a battery with the upper surface of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each end wall of said box, a cable bracket for each battery cable detachably secured to the upper surface of one side Wall of said boxadjacent the battery terminals, a retaining bracket secured to each end wall of said 4box for the reception and retention of the free end of each battery cable after each cable has been passed through one cable bracket and coiled around one cable retaining means, a handle bracket secured to the upper portion of each end wall and having` portions extending thereabove, and a handle having portions pivotally connected to the upwardly extending portions of each handle bracket for movement to a carrying position in which the handle extends above and longitudinally of said box.

14. A battery and cable carrier adapted to receive a battery and the cables connected to the terminals of the battery, the cables terminating in clamps, comprising an open top box adapted to conformably receive a battery with the upper surface of the battery exposed, a combined handle and cable retaining means secured to each' end Wall of said box, a cable bracket for each battery cable adapted to be secured and to secure the cables to the upper surface of one side wall of said box adjacent the battery terminals, a cushion for the bottom and the lower portions of the walls of said box, a cushion for the upper portion of the walls of said box, a retaining bracket secured to each end wall of said box adjacent said combined handle and cable retaining means and adjacent the upper surface of said end walls, said cushion for the upper portion of the walls of said box extending between the end walls of said box and said retaining brackets, said retaining brackets serving to receive and retain the clamps provided at the free ends of the battery cables after the cables have been passed through said cable brackets and coiled around said cable retaining means, a handle bracket secured to the upper portion of each end Wall at the mid-point thereof and having portions extending above the upper surface of the end walls, a handle having end portions pivotally connected to the upwardly extending portions of each of said handle brackets for movement from an at rest position in which the handle engages the upper surfaces of the two end walls and the upper surface of the side wall opposite that to which said cable brackets are secured to a carrying position extending above and longitudinally of said box, and limit means formed integrally with each of said handle brackets for engagement with said end portions of said handle to prevent movement of said handle from its carrying position toward the side wall of said Ibox to which said cable brackets are secured.

LAWRENCE BE'IZ.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,272,247 Ford July 9, 1918 1,364,358 Edison Jan. 4, 1921 1,514,056 Leitzen Nov. 4, 1924 1,514,670 Melchior Nov. 11, 1924 1,543,017 Lea June 23. 1925 1,840,240 Ludewig Jan. 5, 1932 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 917,438 France 1-..---. Jan. 7. 1947 

